BoatBanter.com - View Single Post

Califbill

F*O*A*D wrote:
On 4/8/14, 1:05 PM, wrote:
On Tue, 08 Apr 2014 06:33:21 -0400, F*O*A*D wrote:

On 4/8/14, 1:59 AM, wrote:
On Mon, 07 Apr 2014 16:21:16 -0400, F*O*A*D wrote:

"Where's the Ukraine?" "Oh, somewhere near the Yukon, right?"

That public school education I guess.

Americans are "suspicious" of intellectually based education and
pursuits, and for many, if it isn't job-related, then the question
arises, "why teach it." After all, knowing the boundaries of the nations
that make up former Soviet Russia isn't going to get you into the Army
or that job assembling electronic widgets.

I mean, why study history, geographic, language, et cetera. They're just
liberal arts pursuits, eh?

I bet 90% of the teachers could not get more than half of the former
Soviet states right on a map.
Most would not even be able to point out all of the western European
countries.

I can't speak to the educational and intellectual attainments of today's
classroom teachers, since I have no direct contact with large groups of
them, I don't have any school-aged children, and I don't know what is
taught or how it is taught in the public schools.

If your posit is correct, then it just proves my original point, about
the lack of support for intellectual pursuits. I suspect a goodly number
of the few remaining posters in rec.boats couldn't write in the names of
the lower 48 states and the state capitals on an outline map of the USA.
They might be able to point out Alaska, but probably think its capital is Wasilla.

How many freeways to the capital of Alaska? Without looking up the answer.